Researchers find a mermaid skeleton in Iceland, solving a centuries-old mystery.

The first mermaid myths may have started around 1000 B.C.; legends speak of a Syrian goddess who attempted to convert into a fish by jumping into a lake, but her incredible beauty prevented this, and only her bottom half changed.

Since then, numerous other mermaid tales have surfaced in folklore across numerous civilizations. For instance, the Caribbean water spirit Lasirn and the African water spirit Mami Wata both take on the appearance of mermaids.

Throughout history, numerous explorers—Christopher Columbus being the most well-known—have claimed to have seen mermaids. In 1493, Columbus is said to have seen mermaids close to Haiti, which he described as being “not as gorgeous as they are painted, for strangely in the face they appear like men,” according to the American Museum of Natural History.

According to Edward Rowe Snow’s “The Dead Man and the Sea” (Dodd Mead, January 1967), Captain John Smith saw a big-eyed, green-haired mermaid in 1614 off the coast of Newfoundland and briefly fell in “love” with her before realizing his mistake.

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